Unable to find records in global search

This article describes the steps to diagnose and fix situations where a specific user cannot find records via Global Search while other users can.

General Search Notes and Recommendations

• Searching for Community Users only returns matching Contact records. Global Search does not return Community User records in People search results.
• Use complete search terms when possible. If the exact search term is not known, refer to Wildcards and operators for search.
• Perform a sort or filter on search results to find the record. Refer to Filter and Sort Search Results in Lightning Experience.
• If the Tab setting is set to Hidden for any object (standard or custom), Global Search will not return records for that object.
• Record IDs are not indexed for search and will not return results. Vote on the Idea to change this behavior.

Step 1: Review Record Access

• System Administrators — Check that no Org Wide Defaults or Role Hierarchy settings restrict access to the records.
• Standard Users (or profiles with limited access) — Contact your Salesforce administrator for further assistance.

Step 2: Review the Organization's Global Search Settings

Global Search tracks which objects a user uses and how often, then ranks results accordingly. The object used most frequently appears at the top.

• If the affected user rarely interacts with the object they are searching for, that object has lower priority in their results. Review the Objects displayed in search results inconsistent between users article for details.
• In Salesforce Classic: After performing a Global Search, click Search All to search across all items. Hover over an object in the results list and pin it to ensure it always appears. Note: If users do not see expected results, check whether they have selected "Limit to Items I Own" or "Exact phrase" via the Options link next to the "Search Again" button.
• In Lightning Experience: There is no "Search All" option. "Top Results" displays the most relevant records grouped by most frequently used objects. To see results for other objects, click the object names on the left side of the page under "Search Results." Select "Show More" to see all available objects in alphabetical order.
• Results ordering — Differences between two users for the same object may be due to the search engine sorting results by relevance based on term frequency, order, uniqueness, record and user activity, and access permissions. See SOSL Limits and How Are Search Results Ordered?.

Step 3: Check for Search Crowding
Search Crowding occurs when a large number of records match a search term, pushing some matching records out of the visible results. If the user has access to the record but it is still excluded from results, attempt to locate it using a more specific search term unique to that record. See Guidelines for Reducing Search Crowding.

Step 4: Check the Object Settings (For Custom Objects)
If the user has access to a custom object's record but it is still excluded from results, the "Allow Search" setting may be disabled on the custom object. To verify: go to Setup, find the desired object, select Edit, and confirm the Allow Search checkbox is enabled.

Step 5: Search Results Are Adjusted Per User

• If you do not have access to a record but someone else does, it appears for them but not for you. Access permissions are based on user profiles.
• Record ownership boosts records in results. If you own the record, it appears higher in your search results.
• Object history boosts records in results. Records from object types you use more frequently have higher priority.